Session #9

Which Ocean Do We Want? Indigenous Knowledge, Power, and the Politics of Global Ocean Governance

Coordination:Montse Pijoan, Elisabeth Cunin, Georgeta Stoica
May 5, 2026 1:00 pm
Seminar

This webinar examines the role of Indigenous knowledge, epistemic justice, and equity in global ocean governance, exploring how local and global, scientific and political spheres intersect in shaping the future of the ocean. It interrogates how the concept of a “One Ocean”—lived and shared by many Indigenous communities—is mobilized within Western ocean diplomacy, raising a central question: are we truly constructing the ocean we want, or reproducing hierarchies and exclusions under the guise of inclusivity?

The discussion highlights the growing presence of Indigenous peoples in international arenas, while critically examining the tension between formal inclusion and genuine decision-making power. Indigenous participation is often symbolic or instrumentalized, revealing how recognition does not always translate into authority or influence. From this perspective, the webinar foregrounds the deeply political question: who constitutes the “we” in “the ocean we want”?

Drawing on case studies that converged at OOSC and UNOC, the webinar explores how Indigenous knowledge and local ocean practices are represented in global governance spaces such as IPOS and UNOC, and how small communities can become emblematic of “Indigenous knowledge” on the global stage.

Participants will analyze how these processes reshape local practices, power relations, and expectations, while examining the intersections of science, power, and capital in determining whose knowledge counts, who is allowed to speak, and which forms of knowledge are legitimized in international decision-making.

At its core, the webinar critically reflects on inclusion, representation, and authority in ocean governance, asking not only how Indigenous knowledge is incorporated, but on whose terms—and to whose benefit.

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🗓️ Date: Tuesday, May 5, 2026

⌚ Hour: 1-2 PM online, up to 3 PM on site

📍Place: TBC

✍ Register

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Montse Pijoan (OOSC ethnography, Postdoctoral Researcher at IRD, anthropologist) and Elisabeth Cunin (UNOC ethnography, Research Director at IRD)

Session introduction and moderation:

Montse Pijoan (OOSC ethnography, Postdoctoral Researcher at IRD, anthropologist)
Elisabeth Cunin (UNOC ethnography, Research Director at IRD)

Case studies:

Rahera Ohia and François Thoral, Matauranga Project Lead and Postdoctoral Researcher in Marine Sciences at University of Waikato. Tau ki Akau – Ridges to Reef Project.
Teriitutea Quesnot, Full Professor of Human Geography, Université Côte d’Azur
Sandra Ranaivomanana, PhD student, Institut Halieutique et des Sciences Marines, University of Toliara, Madagascar.
Georgeta Stoica, Associate Professor, Université de Mayotte
Elisabeth Cunin, DR Université Côte d’Azur.

David Dumoulin, HDR in Sociology, Université Sorbonne Nouvelle – Institut des Hautes Études de l’Amérique Latine [IHEAL] will provide an overview of the presentations.